UIndy 2, NKU 1 (7 innings)
NKU 3, UIndy 2 (9 innings)
INDIANAPOLIS- The top two baseball teams in the Great Lakes Valley Conference split the second pair of games of their four game series Easter Sunday, with UIndy getting the win in game one of the day 2-1, before Northern Kentucky rebounded for the 3-2 win in the nightcap. The split puts the Greyhounds at 27-14 overall in 2009, 15-5 in conference play. The Norse are now 22-17 total, 11-9 in GLVC games.
GAME 1 (7 innings)
Runs were at a premium in game one of the day, with NKU and UIndy combining for just three runs total in the seven inning game. The Norse threatened in the top of the first inning, leading off the game with a single. The NKU runner would make it to third on a sacrifice bunt and a groundout, but he was left there after a stellar play at shortstop by
Adam Akin (Evansville, Ind./North).
The Greyhounds struck first, pushing a lone run across in the second inning.
Travis Capps (Indianapolis, Ind./Warren Central) reached on an infield hit with two outs in the frame, and came around to score on a shot through the right side from
Erik Rieker (Racine, Wis./Jerome Case).
UIndy doubled its lead in the bottom of the sixth, with
Ben Sondgeroth (Rock Falls, Ill./Rock Falls) leading off the frame with a single to right.
Andrew Armour (New Palestine, Ind./New Palestine) recorded an out and replaced Sondgeroth at first with a fielder's choice, and stole second on the next pitch. He made it another 90 feet on a passed ball a few minutes later, and finally came home on a wild pitch from the NKU hurler.
Cory White (South Fulton, Tenn./South Fulton), the Greyhound starter, mowed through the NKU lineup, stringing together 12 consecutive outs before allowing the only Norse run of the game on a solo homer to left field in the top of the seventh. In all, White recorded four strikeouts and gave up just three hits en route to staying undefeated and earning his sixth win of the season.
Akin (pictured), Capps and
Scott Lawley (New Palestine, Ind./New Palestine) each had a pair of hits in game one for the Greyhounds.
GAME 2 (9 innings)
Pitching again dominated in the nightcap, with
Andrew Werner (Washington, Ill./Washington Community) and the Norse thrower, Ryan Schmidt, combining to allow just four runners through the first three innings of play. One of those came home, a walk given up by Werner to lead off the NKU third. Another tough play made by Akin at short retired the side.
The Greyhounds proved the old baseball attage of walks being costly in the bottom of the fourth inning, as they tied the ballgame at 1-1 on a pair of two-out walks and an error by the NKU secondbaseman. Sondgeroth was the first to walk, collecting a stolen base on the way to scoring the UIndy run.
NKU added another run in the top of the fifth to take a 2-1 lead, with errors this time allowing the run to score. The Norse lead-off man found his way onbase after an Akin throw went awry, and came around to score on a throw past the thirdbaseman by Werner. Groundouts to Akin and Lawley got the Greyhounds out of the inning.
The 2-1 Norse lead would not stand for long, however, with UIndy answering with a single run of its own in the bottom of the inning.
Casey Potter (Grand Forks, N.D./Red River) jumpstarted the Greyhound offense with their first hit of the day, and advanced to second on a fielder's choice from
Justin Russell (Lafayette, Ind./Jefferson) a batter later. Akin also reached on a fielder's choice, with Potter out on the play at third. Chase Kittenger drove Russell in on a single to right field.
Neither team scored again until the ninth inning, when NKU pushed across the go-ahead run on a suicide squeeze play with the bases loaded. The Norse's lead-off man reached on a catcher's interferance, and the second NKU batter of the inning got on via a walk, knocking Werner out of the ballgame.
Ryan Burlas (Cincinnati, Ohio/Turpin) intentionally walked the next NKU hitter to load the bases, but that move proved to be in vain, as a perfectly-executed suicide squeeze play pushed the third Norse run across. NKU tried the bunt play again, but a heads-up play by Capps at third got the Greyhounds' the force out at home. A strikeout from Burlas ended the inning.
UIndy threatened in the bottom of the ninth, but could not push a run across. Capps led off the inning with a single through the left side, and was pushed to second on a sacrifice from Lawley. Rieker put Greyhounds at first and third with an infield single to shortstop, but Potter grounded into the 4-6-3 doubleplay to end the game and give UIndy the weekend split.
Werner was tagged with the loss, dropping his record to 4-1 on the year. The Greyhound senior tossed eight solid innings, striking out seven, walking three and allowing just one NKU hit. Rieker had a pair of hits for the UIndy offense.
The Greyhounds will take the trip north on I-65 this weekend for four-games with GLVC East-foe Saint Joseph's. The Saturday-Sunday series starts at noon both days.